Transfer madness

The 3-month period between the end of one season and the start of the next is always hard for many fans of English football. But what makes this period extra hard to endure, is the absolute rubbish being published on a daily basis in the news media, particularly regarding possible transfers.

United fans have suffered through many long 'transfer sagas' over the years. Remember Wesley Sneijder? Say no more.

This summer, the media have fed us daily updates on Rooney, Thiago, Fabregas and Ronaldo, with no end in sight. I will therefore set the record straight.

Rooney: he is staying at United. Period. The media (and perhaps Rooney's agent) are trying to fan the flames of discontent, but it won't work. As far as I know, Rooney himself has not said anything publicly about wanting to leave the club (unlike a couple of years ago). Moyes wants to keep him, and knows what a great player Rooney is at his best. Therefore, my conclusion is that Rooney stays, at least for now.

Thiago: I don't think United ever bid for him. And frankly, I am not sure that English football would be such a good fit for him (he seems to agree, having chosen to team up with his old coach in Bayern).

Fabregas: he would be a good signing for United, but I don't see how Barcelona could sell two top midfielders in such a short time span. They don't need the money. And with a new coach, Fabregas has a new chance to carve out his place among Barca's starting 11. My conclusion: Fabregas will stay at Barca.

Ronaldo: he is the second best player is the world. There is zero chance that Real will sell him, even after dishing out an absolutely ridiculous amount of money to sign Bale. So Ronaldo will stay where he is as well.

As we football fans know too well, most of the possible transfers we read about in the media will never materialize. However, we keep buying these stories, perhaps because they allow us to dream of great success in the upcoming season. For my part, I believe United already have a strong, balanced squad, which is in a position to win trophies this coming season, even without the arrival of Fabregas.

Here is my starting line-up (4-4-2 formation), for the away game at Swansea:
De Gea
Jones, Ferdinand, Vidic, Evra
Zaha, Carrick, Kagawa, Young
Rooney, Van Persey
Subs: Lindegard, Rafael, Smalling, Cleverley, Nani, Chicharito
(sorry Ryan Giggs, but you will sit with the coaching staff)

What do you think? What does your starting line-up look like? Let me hear from you!